How to Transfer Outlook Data to a New Computer – Step-by-Step Guide

Approved By Debasish Pramanik

Published On January 25th, 2024

Reading Time 5 Minutes Reading

Category Outlook Tips

There are different ways to move an Outlook data file to another computer. These differ with different versions of MS Outlook and the method or approach. There is a manual method and the other is using a professional tool from the market. Both of them include two major steps. One is to copy the personal storage file by saving it to an external drive or burning it to a CD/DVD drive. And the second step involves importing the PST file into the MS Outlook application on another Windows machine. This way one can move emails stored in Outlook data file from one computer to another. There are also third-party tools available in the market that make the task of transferring Outlook data much easier. This post describes different ways on how to transfer Outlook data to another computer. There is also a professional solution described. Read more to find out what will be the best way to copy Outlook data file to another computer.

Professional Solutions to Move Outlook Data to Another PC

Following are some of the ways to transfer Outlook PST file to a new computer and upload it to MS Outlook application on another Windows machine.

Method#1 For Outlook Versions 2010 and above

Following are the steps to copy Outlook data file to new computer and open PST file on another computer. Repeat the steps below precisely to avoid any data loss during transfer.

Step 1: In the first step, one needs to export Outlook data to PST file. Here are the steps that will help in transferring Outlook emails to external hard drive.

First, close the Outlook application on the original system and click on the Start button or press the Windows key from the keyboard.
Next, type in Run in the search bar. A small box with Run written on it will appear.
From there, type Control Panel in the Run box. A Control Panel window will appear.
From the ‘Pick a Category’ page, select User Accounts.
Then, click on the Mail icon to open the Mail Setup – Outlook dialogue box.
From the Profiles section, click on the Show Profiles.
Now, a Mail dialogue box will appear.
Under the General tab, select the appropriate profile and click on Properties.
From the new Mail dialogue box, click on the Data Files. button.
Under Name, click on the Personal Folders Service to backup PST file.
Click on the Settings, to check the folder location where the exported PST file is saved.
Now, close all the Properties windows.
Finally, copy PST file to another drive on the computer or burn it to a CD/DVD drive.
Next, move this copy to the new computer.

Step 2: Alternatively, one can also try to move single folders in Outlook to hard drive. This is another solution on how to transfer Outlook data to new computer.

In MS Outlook application go to File>>Options. An Outlook options window will appear.
From the left panel of the ‘Outlook options’ window, click on the Advanced link.
From the Export section, click on Export button.
Now, an Import and Export Wizard box will appear. From the list, click on Export to a file option.
Then, click on the Next button to proceed further.
From Export to a File section, click on Outlook data file(.pst). Then, click the Next button for moving to the next step.
Next, select the folder that needs to be moved to a new PST file. After that, click the Next button.
Following that, Browse to the folder location where the exported .pst file will be saved.
Under the ‘Save exported file name as’ option, provide a name for the new .pst file.
Finally, click on the Finish button to complete creating a new PST file for a specific single folder in Outlook.

Step 3: The final move involves steps to import Outlook PST file to new computer. Following are steps to import .pst file to new Windows computer.

From the Outlook application on the new computer, go to File>>Open>>Import.
Now, an Import and Export Wizard box will appear. From there, select Import from another program or file and click on the Next button.
Next, select the Outlook data file(.pst) and click on the Next button.
Then, Browse to the folder location where the newly created .pst file had been saved that has been copied from the other computer.
From the Options section, choose the Do not import duplicates option and click on the Next button.
Finally, select the folders that need to be imported and click on Finish.

Method#2 Expert Solution to Transfer Outlook Data File to New Computer

There are other ways to directly transfer Outlook data to another computer. This involves using a third-party tool like Outlook OST Converter. This professional solution directly converts complete mailbox data stored on Outlook database file to a new PST file. It can migrate emails, contacts, calendars, notes, tasks, journals and all Outlook data to a separate PST file. It can even work with Outlook.bak file created by the Scan PST tool. It can even convert data from Office 365 mailboxes and Hotmail accounts to a new .pst file. It is compatible with all versions of Windows including Win 10.

Conclusion

There are a lot of solutions available in the market on how to transfer Outlook data to a new computer. There are many manual approaches also mentioned online which confuse a user. It is best to read more about the OST and PST file before proceeding. One must understand all the possible alternatives available before undertaking the task of moving important emails. It is therefore highly recommended to backup emails separately before moving them around.